Love for Love's Sake - Chapter 72
Chapter 72
“Don’t go.”
Cha Yeowoon stubbornly blocked my path. After being dazed, when I tried to pass, he moved directly to block me once again.
“I was wrong.”
This time, Cha Yeowoon didn’t lower his head. He was determined, as if believing that if he took his eyes off me even for a moment he would lose me.
He didn’t have to be that desperate. The more it went on like this, the more my heart wrenched.
As I remained silent, a hesitant hand reached out toward me.
“It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way. You don’t have to like me as much as I like you.”
Cha Yeowoon’s fingers seemed like it touched the edge of my clothes.
[ A system error has occurred. ]
The error message was faster than Cha Yeowoon’s hand. My toes tensed inside my shoes. My body reacted before my mind. My calves were tense as if I wanted to leave this place immediately.
“Let’s talk later.”
When I said decisively, Cha Yeowoon became rigid.
“Later, when?”
A persistent question followed. I shook my head and tried to pass Cha Yeowoon.
I didn’t expect it to come to this. He was a child who had protected himself by pretending that he could easily let go of anything, whether it be track and field or life.
He seemed just as surprised as I was.
“Did I do something so wrong today? To the point where it’s unbearable to see me…?”
Cha Yeowoon’s murmur came from behind. My steps became heavy as if lead was attached to my ankles. I wanted to answer that it wasn’t like that. It wasn’t that he had done something wrong or that I disliked him.
[ Emergency-Mission: Keep Cha Yeowoon’s favorability from rising until the server stabilizes. ]
[ Penalty: Mission¾î¶Èõ¿ ]
The broken text cluttered my view. At first, I thought I might have read it wrong, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t read it.
It was ominous. Without having to think long, I knew it was a warning.
I stood in front of the crosswalk to return the way I came. The signal was still red, but it would change soon.
After crossing the street I would be able to take the bus. I needed time to cool my head.
When I turned around, Cha Yeowoon, who had been following me hesitantly, stopped. Seeing his stunned and pale face like that of a lost child, I felt as if I was abandoning him.
I couldn’t endure it.
The approaching cars gradually slowed down. People standing beside me walked across the white line in unison. One side stopped and the other side passed. I had to pass too.
“Hey, crybaby.”
Instead of crossing the street, I stood facing Cha Yeowoon.
It felt like a lengthy, single cut scene. Despite the straight road and people passing by between us, Cha Yeowoon and I were locking eyes from opposite ends.
Serving as each other’s reference points, it seemed there was nothing beyond that, even if the horizon and surface stretched far beyond each other’s backs.
“Is canceling our plans for today that heartbreaking?”
Cha Yeowoon didn’t answer and took another step toward me. Tensions permeated his eyes as if he was watching to see if I would take a step back.
I didn’t avoid him. Instead, I took the same step forward. The distance between us narrowed as much as our steps.
“Are you going to cry again?”
Cha Yeowoon walked briskly and hugged me. A dull shock hit my chest and my body instinctively jerked backward.
As I stumbled and finally regained my balance, I felt fingertips scratching my back like claws. It was a strong hug that almost choked my breath.
“Are you angry?”
“No.”
“Are you disappointed?”
“No.”
“Then?”
“I’m just worried.”
A translucent window appeared against the backdrop of clouds huddled together like black sheeps. The sun was beginning to set.
[ Calculating Cha Yeowoon’s favorability. ]
I never thought I would see this and worry. Life was always full of unknowns. It could become tangled without knowing where it had gone wrong and positives might take a turn for the worse.
[ Favorability: 68 ]
What a disaster…How the hell did Cha Yeowoon come to like me so easily?
It was a clear disaster. But it was still nice to feel his hug, holding me tightly so I wouldn’t go anywhere.
I was the one that had made him cry, and I was also the one soothing him. What good was a person that lifted and put down a person as they pleased? Yet, Cha Yeowoon was thinking about me while sniffling until his nose had turned red. Affection, without purpose or calculation, coursed through my skin.
Cha Yeowoon liked me.
Just enough without getting hurt, that kind of hope was already lost.
[ Mission failed. ]
[ A system error has occurred. ]
[ Çѱâ´É을 forcefully executed. ]
Something big happened. I didn’t know exactly what yet.
Pricked by thorn-like fear, I swept Cha Yeowoon’s back. Despite it being midsummer, the air felt surprisingly cool, maybe due to the approaching rain clouds. Cha Yeowoon was vividly hot. It felt like he would become cold if I let go.
I couldn’t reject him.
* * *
[ Favorability: 68 ]